New York, New York (January 28, 2004) – Steve Saffel, Editorial Director of Media Projects for Del Rey Books, has signed on Amber Benson and Christopher Golden to co-author a series of original novels based upon their wildly popular BBCi animated online drama GHOSTS OF ALBION.

Amber Benson, best known for her portrayal of Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, is an actress/writer/director whose most recent work includes the upcoming independent films Latter Days and Chance (which she also wrote, produced and directed). Among Benson's other film credits are The Crush, Bye Bye Love, Imaginary Crimes and Steven Soderbergh's critically-acclaimed King of the Hill.

Christopher Golden is a Bram Stoker Award-winning writer best known for his novels The Boys Are Back in Town, The Ferryman, Strangewood, and The Gathering Dark. Golden is also the author of the Body of Evidence series of teen thrillers, and several bestselling Buffy and Angel tie-in novels. As comic-book writer Golden has penned original tales for Batman, Spider-Man, Doctor Fate, Punisher, and Hellboy.

Set in nineteenth-century London, GHOSTS OF ALBION revolves around William and Tamara Swift, siblings who must use their family legacy of supernatural powers to protect England from an ancient evil that threatens to destroy the world. To this end, they enlist the help of the mystical "Ghosts of Albion," a trio of restless and heroic spirits from England's past: Lord Nelson, Lord Byron and Queen Bodicea.

Created and written by Benson and Golden, and directed by Benson, GHOSTS OF ALBION originally launched at BBC online last March as a series of original twelve-minute animated chapters, and featured vocal talents such as Emma Samms and Anthony Daniels. The online series won Special Commendation at the 2003 Prix Europa Awards, an award that recognizes the best in European television, radio and web production. GHOSTS OF ALBION soon became a cult favorite, was listed by USA Today as a "Hot Site," and went on to generate an equally popular sequel, the original online novella Astray.

"Working on the animated serial version of GHOSTS OF ALBION was wonderful, but we've really only scratched the surface," Golden explained. "In the novels, we'll have the space to enrich our characters, and you can bet that's going to make their lives darker, nastier, more complex and far sexier. Working with Amber is a pleasure. She's remarkably talented, a Renaissance woman, and her mind is even more devious than mine."

Co-author Benson matched Golden's enthusiasm for the project. "It's fantastic to think that after years of being a voracious reader, I have the opportunity to join the ranks of those very authors that inspired me as a child. Chris and I are honored to have Del Rey as the new literary home of the Ghosts of Albion universe. I can't wait to get down into the really dark places of early Victorian England. We've created an enormous mythology for the series, and it just keeps growing."

"When Amber and Chris brought us their proposal, what struck me immediately was the terrific energy and enthusiasm they had for the story," added Del Rey's Saffel. "These will be edgy, fast-paced adventures that thrust readers back in time to grimy, dimly-lit streets of London, where the shadows hide unspeakable evil. You might say it's Buffy meets The Alienist."

The first of Del Rey's GHOSTS OF ALBION novels is currently scheduled to appear in Fall 2005.

GHOSTS OF ALBION made news recently when Eden Studios (http://www.edenstudios.net) announced an agreement with Benson and Golden to design, produce and distribute an original role-playing game based on the series. Currently in development, the game is slated to hit shelves in 2004.

For more information about BBCi's GHOSTS OF ALBION series, visit the website at http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ghosts.

About Del Rey Books:

Del Rey Books was founded in 1977 as a division of Ballantine Books under the guidance of the renowned Judy-Lynn del Rey and her husband, Lester del Rey. Del Rey publishes the best of modern fantasy, science fiction and alternate history in hardcover, paperback, and now e-book formats. Ballantine Books is a division of The Random House Publishing Group, which is a publishing group within Random House, Inc, the trade book publishing division of Bertelsmann AG, one of the world's leading international media companies.